


Reminiscence

by kumatitty



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Bittersweet, Childhood Memories, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, I'm Bad At Tagging, Late Night Conversations, Melancholy, Promises, Sad, its very melancholy fr, somewhat happy ending, videos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:48:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 3,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27462208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kumatitty/pseuds/kumatitty
Summary: The girl plugs in the USB. She waits a few moments before the files pop up on the screen. Her eyes widen just a bit seeing what exactly is in the USB.6 videos. There are only 6 videos. No titles. Video1.mp4 all the way to Video6.mp4. No images. No text files. Just videos. Every video is around 2 minutes. The last video is a whole 10.She turns down the volume so that it’s just above a whisper.The girl double taps on the first video.
Relationships: Maria Robotnik & Shadow the Hedgehog
Comments: 25
Kudos: 53





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> this took me a whole month lmao   
> pls enjoy and leave kudos!
> 
> find me on:   
> twitter: kumatitty

It’s cold.

The clouds are cuddled up against the sky, trying to block out both the moon and stars from being seen. They cry and weep their tears onto the clothing of the Earth—the grass, the homes, even some of the people. Occasionally, the clouds let out a few sobs here and there, enough to rattle a few of the people into fear. Those inside the homes are likely resting, unable to hear the sadness in which the clouds speak of so loudly. 

All but one, a girl who’s restless, who waits.

The house she roams through is hardly hers—not that she had a house for herself in the first place. Somehow, she finds herself knowing the ins and outs of the area despite being there for the first time (and perhaps the only time). As she wanders, the girl finds herself face to face with the residents of the homes in their own rooms—a large robot charging in one room and a bat girl passed out on the couch with the TV playing softly in the background. She lingers a bit in between hallways, noting the various pictures that seem to hang every meter or so from each other. She sees the bat girl and the robot in almost all of them, along with a tiny, dark hedgehog. Her lips curl on their own at the sight—smiles, smirks, sometimes even playful pouts sport each photo. Her heart warms.

The girl reaches a final room at the right of a hallway. She goes through the door.

The room itself isn’t exactly special. There aren’t many notable items besides an electric guitar and a desk directly opposite to the bed. A few photos are scattered here and there, but the real focus is the light that illuminates the desk as well as a hunched over individual. As the girl glides over, she notices the way the—now identified as the boy from the photos earlier—hedgehog’s whole body seems to be rising and falling slowly. His eyes are shut and his head is nuzzled into the crook of one of his elbows. Photos are scattered all around him, some underneath his arms and some near the edge of the desk. On another edge of the desk, a laptop is plugged in and shut, a few stickers littering its case. A small journal lies in front of his head, opened to a random page filled with writing and a few sketches.

The girl picks up the journal and begins to flip through the pages.

Marigolds, lotuses, catchflies, cosmos; there are flowers on every page. Yellows and oranges surround sunset sketches and messy greens are scribbled on trees. Words spill out of every page like a waterfall: descriptions, notes, opinions. It’s almost overwhelming how filled the journal is; passion is poured into every inch of the page in  _ every single page _ . Near the end of the journal there are pages that are left untouched. However long that’ll last, the girl just knows it won’t be long.

Flipping back to the front of the journal, she notices a USB haphazardly taped on. 

Curiosity kills the cat. She gently pries it off and places the journal back onto the desk with ease. Unplugging the laptop from the edge of the desk and holding it in her hands, she looks around to see where she could sit. With a shrug, she heads towards the edge of the bed and opens the computer, instantly met with the password enter screen.

The girl types in a few letters and numbers. It works, somehow. (Maybe he should’ve chosen something less obvious.)

Regardless, she takes a moment to look at the background. The bat and the robot have their backs turned to the camera near the edge of (what seems to be) a building. The sky in front of them fades from blue to orange, the sun right in the middle of it all. 

It’s quite beautiful.

The girl plugs in the USB. She waits a few moments before the files pop up on the screen. Her eyes widen just a bit seeing what exactly is in the USB.

6 videos. There are only 6 videos. No titles. Video1.mp4 all the way to Video6.mp4. No images. No text files. Just videos. Every video is around 2 minutes. The last video is a whole 10. 

She turns down the volume so that it’s just above a whisper.

The girl double taps on the first video.


	2. i

It’s black.

There's a little bit of light that seeps in through the cracks of whoever’s holding the camera. Someone’s fiddling around a bit, a small frustrated groan escapes the person. After multiple seconds of pure black, the video suddenly explodes with color. 

The camera takes a little bit to focus, but when it does, the sight is something else entirely. The sky is all dressed up—pinks near the top of the sky fade into the harsh red horizon. The clouds soak up vibrant purples and midnight blues. In the middle of it all stands a semi-circle of yellow light, its rays shining all across the sky. The sun’s reflection is almost symmetrical on the water of the ocean, yet it's disturbed slightly from the few waves every minute. Despite this, it still manages to carry its own beauty. The entire view is breathtaking.

Suddenly, a voice speaks up.

“Hey, we’re gonna head back soon. Are you coming?”

“Just a moment,” The one filming speaks.

There are a few more seconds of silence; the ocean waves crash softly in the background, filling up the void of noise. It’s strangely peaceful, watching a video of it all. The voice speaks again.

"We had books of everything on there.” The voice was almost above a whisper, “I remember seeing your eyes light up when you saw the pictures of the sunsets.”

A breathless chuckle sounded throughout.

“You loved them so much…The most we ever saw from space was the sun just floating.” There was a pause. “There were no pretty colors. It was just space and more space.”

Shuffling, and a slight zoom in.

“I thought that sunsets were nothing special. Well." another chuckle, “I guess I was proven wrong. I enjoy it. I know you would, too.”

Ten more seconds until the video ended. Ever so softly, almost as if the voice didn’t mean for it to be heard, a sentence was whispered.

“Warm colors were always your favorite.” 

And it clicks off.


	3. ii

The second video starts off the same—black with a little bit of light peeking through.

This time, the owner seems to be quicker with the camera. A few seconds pass before the camera is eventually pointed upwards into a sea of colors. It takes a few moments to adjust from the blurry sea into something more refined; however, the result is absolutely breathtaking.

There are flowers  _ everywhere _ . They extend out miles and miles, becoming less detailed as the hills continue on. The flowers themselves bleed colors of maroons, deep lavenders, roaring yellows, and even the prettiest of pinks. Wind sweeps through them all and dances with each and every flower, even stopping to dance amongst the rich grass. 

It was mesmerizing. 

The same voice speaks again, albeit smaller and softer than before.

“Flower fields were in your—in our books as well. They were described as having… having thousands upon thousands of flowers in sight. I would love to go and count every single one,” there was a chuckle in between, “but I don’t believe I can do that.

“You mentioned something about creating a crown made out of flowers. You pointed to the image of what it looked like and told me  _ ‘I’ll make two. One for me and one for you!’  _ You promised right after that you would.

“It’s okay. I did it for you.”

The camera suddenly pans down, and there on the grass are two flower crowns. One is littered with the glowing yellows and delicate pinks while the other is laced with those same lavenders and maroons. The actual crowns seem to have been handled with care; the knots are tied perfectly and the stems aren’t as crushed as they would normally be. Next to them are what seem to be incomplete or prototype versions sprawled about. However, both of them are undeniably  _ pretty _ . 

The camera moves back up to the field.

“I think you should wear the lavender and maroon one. It’d go well with your blonde hair. The pink and yellow fit my quills well. I will take a photo after this. I think you’ll love the pink and yellow on me.

“You did love to dress me up.”

Nothing else is said for the remainder of the video. Just a full minute of the field in all its glory on a sweet, spring day. 


	4. iii

There's no talking in this video.

Rather, it starts instantaneously. There are trees and bushes surrounding the camera, yet they're on the side and don't interfere with the dirt path. The trees stretch on up to the sky, blocking out some of the sunlight and creating shimmering diamond patterns on the path ahead. Bushes come in all shapes and sizes—some of their leaves are sharper in comparison to others' sleek ones. 

Before long, the camera begins to wobble a little as the person takes steps forward. There are crunches of leaves and the sounds of stepping in dirt; even the occasional bird chirp. However, there are no voices. The trail ahead seems to be getting steeper and steeper, but the trees seem to decrease in number.

The sounds of nature continue on with the images of trees and bushes seem to fill up the entire screen. It lasts for a whole two minutes and three seconds.

It ends abruptly—the person not even stopping to end it. It ends on a blurry frame, but the forest's beauty is still visible within it. 

It’s oddly serene.


	5. iv

The previous video leads to this one.

It’s high up—the previous forest was seemingly far away, now all the trees looked like one homogenous green blob. Even farther away were buildings of some kind; probably a city in the distance. Although everything looked farther away, the sky itself was endless. The darker blue near the horizon melted into the brighter blue; a few clouds were floating by as well.

The wind speaks little words, yet, all it comes out is rustling noises as it (presumably) hits against the microphone. There’s a slight crunch.

This time, the voice was speaking much louder.

“I am at the top, finally. It took me a few hours. I didn’t want to teleport or run—I heard the experience was better this way; I mean, by hiking.

“It’s quite breathtaking, don’t you agree? I didn’t believe it would be so special. I always thought it would be just like what we saw in space. When you were bedridden and I would have trouble climbing up, and you would help me. 

“It was silent; I was not allowed to be there at all, yet I couldn’t help but visit you. I never told you, but I worried for you. I visited so often because I was afraid.

“Regardless, we both sat in silence. There was a large pane of glass in the room—likely for viewing the Earth. If the clouds were cleared, we would see the greens of the forests and the land. I always thought that this view would look the same, maybe with a few details. I was wrong.

“You even told me such— _ ’Shadow, you're so silly!’  _ you would whisper and then giggle right after, before continuing with  _ ‘We’re so very far away… This view is nothing. There are more details than we can even think of. Isn’t that amazing?’  _ I couldn’t understand what was so nice about details. 

“I believe I get it now. It’s...it’s really something that I couldn’t think of.”

The video zooms in on the trees, highlighting each and every single one. Then it zooms out before zooming back in on the city in the distance. The details are much more clear—the trees with their leaves and the city and its different buildings and their styles. 

“You—you noticed a lot of details. You would tell me about each and every one. I believed I even tried to replicate you once; you ended up laughing at my effort. 

“But I finally believe I can notice those details now. Thank you.”

It clicks off.


	6. v

The next video is taken at a much later date than the others. It’s taken during the month of December and the time on the video seems to be around 7 A.M.

The sun is just barely up in the sky. The normal vibrant blues haven’t appeared yet; rather, the blue seems to mix in with the grey to create a blend of color that highlights the early day. Birds have woken up earlier around this time, yet there are still owls that hoot every so often. There are clouds that look like streaks of paint across the sky, almost blending in within it. But that’s not the focus of this video. 

Instead, the camera quickly makes its way down to the ground—and it’s covered in white. The white on the ground looks soft, almost as if it's a blanket that was smoothed over. However, the camera captures black boots that have stepped in the blanket of white; the ground that was crushed looks jagged and rough, completely different from the untouched one. 

The camera moves as a step is taken forward and as the boot lands in the ground, a loud crunch sound resounds throughout. The noise is oddly satisfying to listen to—as more steps are taken more crunches are heard. It feels just the slightest bit relaxing: watching the boot leave a permanent indent in the ground paired with that same noise. 

A few more steps are taken before the camera pans back up and moves left and right, as if it's trying to show how far it reaches. The voice speaks up.

"It's snow. It rarely snows around these areas. But last night I heard it was going to snow. I couldn't pass up this opportunity. 

"The most we ever saw of snow was… looking at the tip of the Earth. The North and South Poles, both covered in white, were all made of snow. Or ice. I—I am not so sure.

"I asked Gerald about it one day. He told me it was snow. I remember running towards you that night and telling you of the snow I had learned about. It was obvious you already knew, yet you decided to play along with me. 

"I did not understand why you did that. Not until recently, anyway.

"You told me  _ 'Shadow, when we go on Earth, we have to touch the snow'  _ with the brightest smile—I almost believed you could melt the snow with it—and how was I supposed to refuse?

"I remember holding out my pinkie, a matching grin on my face as I told you  _ 'Pinkie promise.'  _ We promised to do it.

"We promised everything when it came to the Earth. From grasses to deserts, everything we wanted to do was sealed within the smallest finger on our hand. 

"I was ready to conquer the world with our promises."

There seems to be more to be said; something else seems to be missing. The voice seems to take in a breath, almost as if it's about to reveal something huge. But it stops. And there is no more spoken after that.

The video ends. (The words are never heard.)


	7. vi

The final video is intimidating.

For one, it's 10 minutes long. The other videos were nothing but 2 minutes, maybe even bordering onto 3. Another thing: there is nothing special about the location of the video. There are no exotic views, nothing rare, nothing special.

It's just the night sky.

Specs of stars, black infested blues as the background, and the moon, shining its light onto the Earth. It's nothing special. It's just a night on Earth.

There are no special sounds, no special sights, nothing remotely different. 

The voice— _ Shadow _ —speaks; it's hushed, almost too soft to hear.

"The one aspect of Earth that you were never too excited about was the night sky. I told you about it one day, curiosity in my voice as I asked why we had skipped over the stars section of the book we would read. 

"You chuckled, but thinking of it now makes me believe you had a bitter undertone while doing so. You told me  _ 'Shadow, I have been on this colony for all of my life… I have seen all the stars I could ever want to see and the moon in all of its close up glory. I could care less to see those same sights on Earth.' _

"And I understood that, yet, I can't help but feel a little bit smarter than you—for once. You said it was the same.

"It is not the same.

"The stars may look like specs from up on space as well, but on Earth they create their own pictures." Shadow zooms into a particular patch of stars, "This is the Big Dipper. It is a constellation. It looks like a pot—those three stars are the handle, and the four make up the pot itself.

"There are constellations everywhere, on this Earth. It can be hard to see the patterns if you haven't attempted to connect the dots. They look like bears sometimes and even great warriors. They can be whatever you want.

"But the stars are just one aspect."

He pauses there. The camera zooms into a few other patches—true to his word, there's a bear, a warrior, and even something that appears to look like a dog. 

"The moon is quite different when viewed from here, too. It's farther away; there are less details that we can see, but it shines so brightly. It glows in the night. We never saw the moon glow as bright as this. 

"Both the stars and the moon are farther away, yet they both shine so beautifully in this night sky. The Earth has given them a home to express themselves. Different from what you expected in space, huh?"

The camera had already moved to the moon, showing the way its bright white illuminated the whole sky. It was a full moon tonight as well; only a few of the craters and their details could be seen. 

“There are animals in the night as well—they make their living during these dark hours and greet the moon and stars all so familiar to them. I can hear their calls: the crickets, the fireflies, the owls, all of them. It’s truly wonderful.

“But their sounds are nothing compared to the night's rhythm itself.

“It’s… impossible to hear, actually. Not with a video, anyway. It’s something that needs to be heard on its own. Yet, when I spent my first night on Earth and truly,  _ truly  _ began to appreciate the night, I heard it. The low hum of the night echoed throughout. It was—It was incredible. Never have I felt more comforted by the sound of… well… nothingness. 

“And I hear it now…” There’s a pause, a slight inhale, and an exhale, “It’s nothing like what we heard together.

“We heard the beeping of the machines next to you, the steps of people against the corridor, the quietness in the void that was space itself. But we never heard the  _ night.  _

“And… I wish you were able to hear it.

“Everytime I’m out here, everytime I appreciate the night, I can’t help but think of what I’d tell you if you were here to see it with me.” His voice begins to shake slightly, the camera shakes along with it, “I can’t help but feel angry at the fact you’ll never get to appreciate the night with me. I can’t help but wish you were by my side, that you would be here and I’d show you how it’s better. It’s so much better than what you expected. It’s everything and more.

“I wish we could’ve seen the Earth together. We promised to see every spot. I wish everyday that you could’ve seen it with me. But I know you’ll never be able to. And I’ve accepted it. I know it.

“It doesn’t stop me from thinking—feeling these things, though.”

The video is nearing its end. There’s only a minute left. 

“I may not have been able to view the world with you by my side. But it’s okay, now. Because I’ve kept all our promises, all the way up to your last one. It’s okay, now. Because I’ve found happiness within the Earth.

“And I can say nothing but thank you, Maria. Thank you for showing me a world of happiness that I wouldn’t ever have known before.” 

It ends.


	8. vii

The girl clicks out of the final video. 

She unplugs the USB. She gently closes the computer. She walks back to the desk. The hedgehog is still sleeping soundly on it. She places it back on the desk and plugs it back to charge. But instead of taping it back in the journal, she places the USB onto the computer. Silently, she fishes out a picture from the pocket of her dress and slides it under the USB. 

There’s a permanent, yet soft smile on her features as she speaks up for the first time since the night began.

“Thank you, Shadow.”

There’s only one person left in the room.


	9. epilogue

(The next morning, Shadow wakes up and sighs to himself, noticing how he had slept on the desk rather than on his bed. He stretches out his limbs, hearing the pop of his joints and ultimately waking up his body as a whole. Out of the corner of his eyes, he notices the USB placed on his laptop.

He raises a brow—he knows for sure it was in his journal.

On closer inspection, he notices the picture that was slipped under.

It’s somewhat grainy and it’s somewhat low quality. But he isn’t focused on that. 

In the photo, there’s a blonde girl and an old man next to her—the girl wears a blue dress and the man wears a lab coat, and they’re both smiling. In front of them both is a tiny hedgehog, black and red, with a bright smile adorning his features as well.

Shadow instantly grabs his journal, flipping through the marked pages before settling on a new one. He grabs some tape and ever so gently tapes the picture onto the blank page. With a smile on his face, he grabs a pen and writes a few words before closing the journal and placing it back on his desk.

_ ‘A world of happiness within’ _ )


End file.
